Some eating guidance for extreme novice

[meshka7]

Hello forum, I know this question have been asked 2000 times before and I've gone through so many posts to the point my brain is fried and a bit overwhelmed by the many suggestions which unfortunately are often conflicting and end up confusing a novice like me. If you have the time I appreciate that you give me some assurance.

I am 36 yo, 6'1", 205lb and very very weak and injured and only a few weeks into my second restart of SS. First one ended with knee problems and a long break out of frustration. I restarted again with empty bar in all lifts and have been going very slowly.

I have been making some progress but not as well as I would like. Always feel tired, heart pumping fast, and body aches. And finally last week I started having knee pain. so naturally I suspect bad nutrition and rest.

I have read Rippetoe's clarification and since I'm overweight (for my weak level of strength), I need to start accumulating calories. I will not do GOMAD and my understanding is that I should do some kind of low or moderate carb diet with plenty of proteins.

Could you recommend for me a starting calorie intake that should facilitate 3 workouts per week (even though Rippetoe says it may not be possible for older guys like me), and about 5lb increase every workout.

Would 3000 kcal be enough? I certainly don't want to get fat by any means and I am hoping my body weight stays the same but change composition. At my age getting fat is enemy #1.

Any suggestions? Thank you.

P.S. some sample meals would be great

[Tom Narvaez]

don't listen to anything Rip and the other people who write articles on this site have to say about nutrition unless you want to be a competitive powerlifter. If you do go that route, don't forget to use the drugs. I saw Reynolds recently tell someone that if they are "afraid of getting fat", they don't have what it psychologically takes to get strong, lol.

The cold hard truth on this matter is that this shit takes time... a lot of time. Pick a body fat range that YOU, and by you, I mean YOU, are comfortable with and stick to it. in all honesty, most novices have no businesses "bulking". they are some of the only people that can actually achieve appreciable recomp. you should start out with a "cut" or just eating more protein and eating healthier in general. i would recommend Lyle McDonald a thousand times over. He has by far the most realistic and practical advice on the subject, IMHO.

that said, as to not completely shirk your actual question, it depends on your goals. i think gaining anything more than 1lbs a week is fairly retarded for your standard strength trainee (outside of water/carb related fluctuation). figure out what your maintenance level is over the course of ~2-3 weeks, and then figure out what it takes to gain between two-thirds to one pound a week.

if you want more specific help, ask Jordan F from this site. he consistently gives great nutrition advice, IMO. lots of guys around here have had success listening to him and he isn't absorbed in the absurd mentality of, "if you have abs, you're a vain bodybuilding faggot".

cliff notes:
1) establish an acceptable body fat range for YOUR personality/psyche, i.e. 20-25%, 12-18%, 15-20%, 10-15% (my recommendation; anything over 25% is pretty much obese)
2) get to the bottom end of that range first (as a raw novice)
3) bulk up 2/3 to 1 pound a week while adding as much to your lifts as possible
4) diet your way down to the bottom end of the range losing 1 to 2 pounds a week while losing as little from your lifts as possible
5) repeat

[melody]

You should probably go get a check-up, get your hormone and blood tests done. At 36 you're not really "older".

[PFerrari]

I think Tom's suggestion is a good one.

One of the biggest practical nutrition pieces of advice I have is plan your meals out at the beginning of the week. Better yet, get a lot of them prepared ahead of time if you can or at least a lot of the prep work. I spend about 2 hours on Sundays cooking all my meat for the week so then I can just heat it up. It helps me stay on track to avoid garbage and helps me make sure that I'm getting the appropriate number of calories given my goals for that week.

You could also do it like 2-3 days at a time if you have the time to do that, but I like just getting it over with all at once.

For meals, I'd recommend just having a healthy portion of meat alongside some vegetables. I'd try to stick paleo-ish with some allowances for other things. Limiting carbs is an easy way to lose weight without sacrificing strength. Try to have the majority of your carbs pre- and post-workout. Stir-fry (no rice or very little rice to lose weight) and chili (little or no beans to lose weight) are a great way to get plenty of meat and veggies and you can vary the meat and how you sauce it slightly to not get board of it.

[Marine]

Hello forum, I know this question have been asked 2000 times before and I've gone through so many posts to the point my brain is fried and a bit overwhelmed by the many suggestions which unfortunately are often conflicting and end up confusing a novice like me. If you have the time I appreciate that you give me some assurance.

I am 36 yo, 6'1", 205lb and very very weak and injured and only a few weeks into my second restart of SS. First one ended with knee problems and a long break out of frustration. I restarted again with empty bar in all lifts and have been going very slowly.

I have been making some progress but not as well as I would like. Always feel tired, heart pumping fast, and body aches. And finally last week I started having knee pain. so naturally I suspect bad nutrition and rest.

I have read Rippetoe's clarification and since I'm overweight (for my weak level of strength), I need to start accumulating calories. I will not do GOMAD and my understanding is that I should do some kind of low or moderate carb diet with plenty of proteins.

Could you recommend for me a starting calorie intake that should facilitate 3 workouts per week (even though Rippetoe says it may not be possible for older guys like me), and about 5lb increase every workout.

Would 3000 kcal be enough? I certainly don't want to get fat by any means and I am hoping my body weight stays the same but change composition. At my age getting fat is enemy #1.

Any suggestions? Thank you.

P.S. some sample meals would be great

Look....

THERE IS NO SUCH THINGS AS LOSING FAT AND GAINING WEIGHT AT THE SAME TIME.

IT NEVER HAPPPENS.....oh you are so sweet....

it never happens....NEVER.

The body can only do one thing at a time unless you are hormonized............

as far as nutrional advice.....YOU HAVE TO FIND WHAT WORKS FOR YOU

Don't take the advice of morons here

carbs no carbs fat no fat all that bullshit..........

hahaahhaha

people are afraid of carbs...hahahahha but carbs are ok...

rippetoe and his advice on bulking make me wanna go hahahahahha

i love how once you get fat they tell you cut the carbs hahaahhahahah

love the broscience....

you have to find what works for you through trial and error

GOMAD certainly does not work...gaining 50 lbs BW and 45lbs on bench press hahahahah

Reynold

what a joker....and this moron's article ahahahahaha

AT LEAST SHOW TE NEEDLE SCARS ,,,,bitch

[hrat]

Just ignore that guy (Marine). I second what's been said above. First, have you seen a doctor? If so, then has your weight been staying steady recently? That suggests you're on a maintenance diet. Then add to that say 500 cals/day and wait two weeks. Have you gained 1-2 lb? If not add more.

Suggested foods will generally be meat, eggs, dairy etc. Nuts, peanut butter for extra fat.

[ecj]

don't listen to anything Rip and the other people who write articles on this site have to say about nutrition unless you want to be a competitive powerlifter. If you do go that route, don't forget to use the drugs. I saw Reynolds recently tell someone that if they are "afraid of getting fat", they don't have what it psychologically takes to get strong, lol.

It's good having you and a couple of other folks here that espouse sane advice on nutrition. The "EAT EVERYTHING!!11" crowd is slowly dying away, although they were emboldened by the latest Reynolds article.

[Mr_Rogers]

It's good having you and a couple of other folks here that espouse sane advice on nutrition. The "EAT EVERYTHING!!11" crowd is slowly dying away, although they were emboldened by the latest Reynolds article.

I wish Tom would have written that seven months ago haha

[Tamara Reynolds]

If you reset to squatting the empty bar, there is no need to have a calorie surplus. The last thing you need to worry about is how many calories you are eating. Like others have said, you need to see a doctor.

[Tamara Reynolds]

It's good having you and a couple of other folks here that espouse sane advice on nutrition. The "EAT EVERYTHING!!11" crowd is slowly dying away, although they were emboldened by the latest Reynolds article.

People see what they want to see. Matt's article didn't apply to the average lifter, and stupid people are stupid.

Of all of the people at my gym who have run LP, not one person has fat fucked himself. And yet, everyone has gotten stronger. Lots of people fat fuck themselves simply because eating more is easier than adding weight to the bar, and this is why everyone is not a winner.

I saw Reynolds recently tell someone that if they are "afraid of getting fat", they don't have what it psychologically takes to get strong, lol.

You should know that is NOT what he said.

"You can't live your life like that forever, but when you are young and skinny and want to get strong, then living like this for a year or so won't hurt anything and my PRs DOUBLED during this time."

He is not talking about an already fat person making himself unnecessarily fat. He is talking about a weak, skinny guy who has the MAIN GOAL of getting strong as fuck and who realizes that they aren't going to do that forever.